Search

New STEM class offered

Pictured are STEM students, Delaine Phelps and Zion Hughes. PHS math teacher John Koket is leading a new STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) class this school year.

Koket expressed an interest in starting the STEM class at PHS, and the Person County School Board agreed that it would help instill students with a deeper knowledge.

The course includes a unit on robotics. Students begin with small engineering projects.

Koket said, “I am teaching students how to become engineers and how to work cooperatively to complete a task. The first nine weeks of the semester is all about physics and electronics. The second nine weeks focuses more on computer-related projects as well as robotics.”

Recently students worked in pairs to construct bridges from popsicle sticks and other materials. They had to view informative videos and complete a webquest in order to gain an understanding on how to construct the bridges. Each student pair’s bridges were first tested to see if they could all support 20 pounds followed by a second round to see how much each individual bridge could hold. The winning bridges were able to support 210 pounds.

The class has also allowed students the opportunity to build their own geometric Rubix cubes and roller coasters in addition to experiment with robotics.